"Breakfast Of Champions" Honors Seko, Switzer, Kelley

THE BOSTON MARATHON'S ANNUAL "BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS" paid special tribute Saturday morning to three past greats, and each paid equal tribute back to the Boston Marathon and its meaning to them. With past champions like Bill Rodgers, Joan Samuelson, Greg Meyer, Lameck Agua, Abebe Mekonnen, Jack Fultz, Geoff Smith, Sara Mae Berman, and Keizo Yamada (1953 winner) in attendance, BAA executive director Guy Morse gave number 1987 to Toshihiko Seko, 261 to Kathrine Switzer (the number she wore in 1967), and 1957 to John J. “The Younger” Kelley, the only BAA Running Club member ever to win Boston.

Seko: “It is a great pleasure to be here again 20 years after my last victory in 1987. Since then I have gained some weight and raised four children. I ran Boston three times. My two victories, in 1981 and 1987, had very special meaning to me and to all the Japanese people, who put the Boston Marathon on the same level as the Olympic Marathon. My victories brought great pride to the Japanese public, and inspired our next generation of young runners. I ran the Boston Marathon from the bottom of my heart. I hope the Boston Marathon will go on forever.”

Switzer: “I ran Boston eight times and never won, so I thank the BAA for inviting me here this morning to the Breakfast of Champions. When I first ran Boston I hated the BAA, and the BAA hated me. But the race changed my life and led to important changes for women around the world. Now this year, 40 years later, the biggest buzz at Boston is about the women’s competitive race. I’d like to be sure everyone understands that the other male runners at Boston were nothing but fabulous. They helped me every step of the way. Also, people should understand that running is a transformational experience, especially for women. It gave me a sense of my destiny. I’m just glad it was a dismal rainy day and I had to cover up in a big gray sweatshirt. Because I came ready to race in a really cute, dishy outfit. On a nice day, the officials would have spotted me in the start area, and tossed me out of the race before we even got started.”

Kelley: “As the last one speaking this morning I feel that I should try to find some common thread that unites us all, from Tom Longboat in 1908 to Kathrine, to the runners today. And I think that connecting thread must be that we all strove to make idealism the primary attribute in our lives. We tried to find something that would add meaning to our lives, and we found the Boston Marathon, and it had such a powerful affect on us that we came back year after year after year. Sometimes the things we encounter in life can look pretty glum, but the Boston Marathon has survived for 111 years against plenty of obstacles, and it seems to teach us that we too should persevere against all the odds we face.”

>>> Race director Dave McGillivray quipped that he has finally figured out how to deal with the weather. “I’ve been sitting with my friends at NASA, and we’ve decided to shuttle all 24,000 runners up to the space station to run with Suni Williams. She’s probably going to have the best conditions of any of us on Monday.”

Williams graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1987, along with now Lt. Commander Ronald Harris, who will be running his seventh marathon on Monday. Harris said that Williams has done up to 17 miles at a time on her space station treadmill, and is hoping for a time of about 3:25. She’ll be wearing number 14,000, as she’s on NASA Expedition 14. Harris, by the way, is a former elite miler with a best of 3:56.5.

>>> One hundred years ago Onandaga Indian Tom Longboat journeyed down to Boston from Hamiliton ONT and won the Marathon in 2:24:24 (on a short course). His daughter Phyllis, now 86, was an invited guest to the Breakfast of Champions, and brought along the spectacular trophy that was awarded to Longboat in 1907. But she remembered an even better prize her father won at another race. “He came home with a touring car, and we drove it around all summer,” she recalled. “It was open on all sides and was wonderful for driving in the warm weather. But not when it got cold. He sold it when winter arrived.”

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